Life 1984

Chapter 252 Gallery Encounter
The plane left the thunderstorm cloud area, climbed to an altitude of [-] meters, and entered the stratosphere for stable flight.

What happened just now, in just a few minutes, caused Li Yunhai and other passengers to experience life and death.

The cabin returned to calm, and everyone let out a long sigh.

The flight attendant helped the injured passenger back to his seat.

Gong Jie calmed down and realized that she had been holding Li Yunhai's hand. She immediately let go of Li Yunhai's hand shyly, straightened her temples, and said, "The ancients said that the clouds are treacherous, and it is true. It was really scary just now. I thought I won’t see the sun tomorrow!”

Li Yunhai's heart was still beating wildly and it was difficult to calm down.

After this incident, Gong Jie and Li Yunhai gained a little more friendship through thick and thin.

After entering the United States, we encountered heavy snowfall in the western region, and the plane was stranded in San Francisco for half a day.When we arrived at the New York Airport, it was already past [-]pm local time.

Li Yunhai and Gong Jie got off the plane and helped her get her luggage.

She was really ready to come to the United States for development and brought two large suitcases.

Li Yunhai helped carry one and walked out of the exit with her.

The weather in New York is even colder than in the West. In the empty airport, the cold wind makes people’s faces hurt.

Li Yunhai asked Gong Jie: "Are you going to go to your friend's place?"

Gong Jie looked at the night sky outside and shook his head: "I haven't contacted them yet. What about you?"

Li Yunhai tightened his collar and said, "I'll go to Kentucky to sign the contract tomorrow. How about we go to the city together? Find a hotel to stay in first."

Gong Jie went out alone and came to a foreign country. In the middle of the night, of course she wanted to have a companion to go with her, so she said hello.

The two took a taxi and headed to New York City.

Li Yunhai communicated with the taxi driver in fluent English and said he wanted to go to the Plaza Hotel.

Because of the newly signed Plaza Agreement, this century-old hotel is well known around the world.

Li Yunhai also wanted to experience the style of this hotel.

The taxi followed Fifth Avenue, turned left onto the one-way street, and parked at the front entrance of the hotel.

The doorman came and opened the car door.

Li Yunhai and Gong Jie got out of the car, and the doorman helped carry their luggage to the front desk to check in.

The front desk told Li Yunhai that only suites were left in the hotel.More than half of the rooms in this hotel are rented long-term.

When Gong Jie saw the price of the room, he was stunned.

"Mr. Li, it costs hundreds of dollars a night here! It's too expensive!" She tugged on Li Yunhai's clothes and whispered, "It's 268 dollars for a suite! Oh my god! How can I afford to live here?"

Although Gong Jie is a star and earns more than ordinary people, the salary in the Mainland is not high. In addition, the black market in the Mainland has a high exchange rate for U.S. dollars, so she did not bring much U.S. dollars in cash when she went abroad this time.

In 1986, the per capita annual income in the United States was US$16174, and the minimum annual salary for NBA players was US$7.

In other words, the monthly salary of ordinary people is only about US$1300.

A dishwasher in New York earns $800 a month, takes care of food and housing, and has to work 12 hours a day.

Comparing this data, we know that staying at the Plaza Hotel for one night costs one-third of the monthly salary of local low-income people.

Not to mention Gong Jie, who just came to New York, even ordinary people working here can't afford to stay in such an expensive hotel.

Li Yunhai told the front desk that he wanted two suites.

"No! It's too expensive. I can't afford it." Seeing that he wanted to open two suites, Gong Jie quickly refused and said, "I'll stay in an ordinary hotel outside!"

Li Yunhai said: "It's past 12 o'clock in the evening. Are you looking for a hotel alone? Do you know where there is a cheap hotel?"

Gong Jie bit her lip. To be honest, she didn't dare.

On the way here, they were sitting in a taxi and saw someone fighting outside, beating people to death. She was so frightened that she even grabbed Li Yunhai's hand.

She also saw many women standing on the street, and some men came up to chat with them.

She had definitely never seen this kind of situation in China, and it gave her a huge psychological impact.

"Mr. Li, you don't have to book a room for me. You are booking a suite. Can I stay in your living room for one night? Do you think that's okay?"

Li Yunhai couldn't help but think of the night when he and Lin Zhi booked a room at the White Swan Hotel in Huacheng.

He smiled slightly and said, "It's okay, I'll open an extra apartment for you to live in."

After opening the room, the waiter in a suit and tie helped carry the luggage and politely asked the two of them to take the elevator upstairs.

The room is opened with a key.

Li Yunhai gave the waiter $5 as a tip.

The waiter smiled happily and said, "Thank you, sir."

Gong Jie lived next door to Li Yunhai. After putting down her backpack, she looked around at this extremely luxurious suite and came to Li Yunhai to express her gratitude to him.

Li Yunhai was on the phone when he heard a knock on the door. He put down the phone and came over to open the door.

He signaled Gong Jie to wait, then returned to the sofa and sat down, picked up the phone and continued talking to Lin Zhi on the phone.

Gong Jie walked to the window and looked at the brightly lit night scene outside.

Li Yunhai reported to Linzhi that he was safe and asked how many orders the dealer conference finally got.

Lin Zhi smiled happily: "Yunhai, we have received a total of 7.6 million orders! That's almost 8 million!"

Li Yunhai smiled and said: "7.6 million! Haha! Great! What is the pre-order quantity for the second-generation typewriter? 5 units? Okay, I understand."

Gong Jie stood by the window and was shocked when she heard Li Yunhai's words!

7.6 million?
God!

The young president of Sihai Group has such a big business?

People in China say that money is everywhere in New York, but working here only costs a few hundred dollars a month.

Li Yunhai can earn so much money in China?

Gong Jie couldn't help but be full of curiosity about Li Yunhai.

After Li Yunhai finished talking to Lin Zhi on the phone, he stood up and said to Gong Jie, "I'm sorry to keep you waiting."

Gong Jie smiled slightly, expressed her gratitude to Li Yunhai, and then asked: "Is your Sihai typewriter so easy to sell? I just heard you say that tens of thousands of units were sold?"

Snacks and drinks were provided in the living room of the suite. Li Yunhai handed her a bottle of drink and stood chatting with her by the window. He said, "The company held a dealer meeting, so we were able to sell so many machines."

Gong Jie looked outside and said, "New York is really developed, much more developed than Shanghai."

Li Yunhai looked at the high-rise buildings outside and said: "Shanghai started later than New York, but it will develop faster in the future and the gap will become smaller and smaller. You have to know that in the last century, New York was already a modern city. It’s a big city.”

Gong Jie slightly frowned her long eyebrows and said, "I was very determined to come to the United States for development, but now I'm a little confused."

Li Yunhai said: "Don't act out a life you're not good at for an audience that doesn't belong to you. Your culture, education, career, and circle are all in China. Now that you suddenly come to the United States, you will definitely be very uncomfortable." Of course, after you live for a while, you may be able to integrate into the circle here. However, to the locals, you will always be a foreigner. Just like foreigners in our country."

Gong Jie nodded: "It's late at night, I won't disturb your rest, good night."

"Good night." Li Yunhai said, "I have a message for you: treat the suspicious eyes of others like a will-o'-the-wisp, and walk boldly on your night path."

Gong Jie's delicate body trembled, she looked deeply at Li Yunhai and said, "Thank you."

After Li Yunhai sent her away, he took a shower and then went to bed to rest.

The next day, Li Yunhai said goodbye to Gong Jie. He was going to Kentucky to sign an agreement with Samuel Hast.

Before departure, Li Yunhai contacted Haster and asked for his address.

The patent transfer contract was signed extremely smoothly.

Hastert knew that this technology had some uses, but several consecutive years of failure had made him no longer want to persist.

That's why he offered $200 million to transfer this technology to Li Yunhai.

Li Yunhai got the patent transfer contract and had to make a new registration.

After completing the formalities, he returned to New York.

To his surprise, there was a sudden heavy snowfall in New York, and a huge blizzard hit the eastern United States.

Li Yunhai originally wanted to buy a ticket to return home on the same day, but local flights were suspended for one day.

He won't be able to leave the country until tomorrow at the earliest.

Li Yunhai had no choice but to find a room in the Plaza Hotel.He now has the patent in hand and can purchase resistive touch screens in large quantities.

Even if Li Yunhai builds his own production factory, it will still take a certain amount of time, so he can only purchase from abroad for the time being.

He contacted the Shanghai Typewriter Factory and placed an additional production order for 8 second-generation typewriters.

Including the previous 2 units, there are a total of 10 second-generation typewriters to be produced.

These second-generation typewriters will not be shipped until after March.

He saw a report in the local newspaper that there was an art exhibition near the Plaza Hotel.

Li Yunhai had nothing to do and braved the heavy snow to come to this art center.

Although it was a snowy day, many people came to watch the exhibition.

Li Yunhai shook off the snow that fell on his body, bought a ticket for US$25, and entered the exhibition hall.

He was disappointed as soon as he came in!
He thought it was such an impressive art exhibition!

Maybe he didn't know how to appreciate these avant-garde arts. In short, he had no trouble watching them and couldn't even feel the artistic content.

Li Yunhai was very disappointed and felt that the $25 ticket was not worth it.

He turned to leave when he heard a shout: "Mr. Li!"

Li Yunhai turned around and saw that it was Gong Jie.

"Hello, Miss Gong!" Li Yunhai smiled, "I didn't expect that we would meet again."

Gong Jie said with a smile: "That's right, it shows that we are still destined!"

She was with two friends and immediately introduced her to Li Yunhai.

One of these two people is a local professor in the United States. Gong Jie met when Gong Jie came to the United States to participate in a film exhibition the year before last. This time she came to the United States, she was invited by this American professor.

There is another person, a young Chinese man named Hu Feng, who is studying in the United States. He has already obtained a master's degree in engineering and will continue his studies.

After graduating with a master's degree in engineering in the United States, working locally can earn an annual salary of more than US$2, which is considered a very high salary compared to those in China.

Gong Jie was very happy to meet Li Yunhai unexpectedly this time.

Four people chatted while standing in front of a painting.

It can be seen that Hu Feng likes Gong Jie very much, and you can even see the admiration in his eyes.

Hu Feng saw Gong Jie and Li Yunhai chatting happily and asked Li Yunhai what he did in China.

Li Yunhai said calmly: "Self-employed."

Hu Feng exclaimed: "Then you are a vagrant."

Li Yunhai said: "You can't say that. Even self-employed people who set up street vendors still have to work. Self-employed people make money by working with their hands. This is also their job."

Hu Feng smiled and said: "Mr. Li, you are a street vendor, but you actually know how to appreciate this high-end oil painting art?"

Li Yunhai heard the thorn in his words, put his hands behind his back, and said: "If you don't know how to appreciate it, you can't appreciate it. But I think art is art, it doesn't matter high or low. Then I would like to ask Mr. Hu, do you think film art is High end or low end?”

Hu Feng didn't know that this was a trap dug by Li Yunhai, and said: "Movies are popular art, just like ancient dramas. They are popular performances, not high-end art. Poetry, music, symphonies, and oil paintings, These are high-end arts.”

Li Yunhai let out a long sigh and said, "It seems that Mr. Hu looks down on film art! In your opinion, are people who act in films considered high-level artists?"

Hu Feng sneered: "Of course it doesn't count! Actors are just like actors. In ancient times, they were the lowest-ranking people."

Gong Jie's beauty was already pale, and she was so embarrassed that she wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl in.

Li Yunhai shook his head: "Mr. Hu, you studied in the West, but you are still full of ancient feudal thoughts. I thought that film was the most important art form in the 20th century. It is all-encompassing. It is a form of telling stories through light and shadow. . Movies deserve to be art, and actors deserve to be performing artists. Movies, like paintings, are neither high-end nor low-end. It depends on the person and the work. Can you, Mr. Hu, just doodle a painting and call it that? High-end art? Do you dare to deny that Chaplin's movies are not art?"

Hu Feng was stunned.

Li Yunhai pointed at Gong Jie and said: "Miss Gong is a famous performing artist in China. She has won the Golden Rooster Award and the Hundred Flowers Award, and is the favorite actress among domestic audiences. Do you dare to say that she is not an artist? Or Are you saying that the movies she stars in are all vulgar?"

Hu Feng groaned, then realized that what he had just said had offended Gong Jie severely.He quickly apologized to Gong Jie: "Xue'er, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it."

He actually knew that Gong Jie's nickname was Xue'er, and he called her so affectionately. It seemed that the relationship between him and Gong Xue was not ordinary.

Gong Jie forced a smile: "It's okay, I never thought I was anything special. I'm just an actor, similar to the actors in ancient times."

Hu Feng's face turned red with embarrassment and said, "Xue'er, I actually like watching movies, and I also like watching the movies you act in."

Gong Jie pursed her lips and said, "It's okay, I know."

Hu Feng gritted his teeth and looked at Li Yunhai.

This person was able to study for a master's degree in the United States. He must be a smart person. His EQ may not be high, but his IQ is definitely not too low. He immediately understood that Li Yunhai had deliberately set a trap for him.

"Mr. Li," Hu Feng retorted, "You, a street vendor in the Mainland, can actually talk about art! This is really ridiculous! Can you tell whether this painting is good or bad?"

Li Yunhai had already admired this painting, but he looked at it carefully and said, "The layout of this oil painting is okay, but the composition is a bit scattered. It would be better if the contrast between light and dark, and the warm and cold tones could be adjusted. This A little to the left, a little above here, and the whole thing will be more perfect.”

He spoke so eloquently that Hu Feng was stunned for a moment.

Gong Jie was laughing beside him.

Seeing that it was noon, Hu Feng wanted to treat Gong Jie to dinner as a landlord.

Gong Jie invited Li Yunhai to come together.

Li Yunhai said: "Let's go to the Plaza Hotel to eat? It's right in front."

Hu Feng was obviously startled. Because he went to school here, he must know how expensive the Plaza Hotel is.

A meal there can cost anywhere from a few dozen dollars to a few hundred dollars.

But he had already said the treat, and it was hard to say that he couldn't afford the treat, so he had to bite the bullet and say yes.

The foreign professor said he still had things to do and left first.

Li Yunhai, Gong Jie and Hu Feng walked out of the exhibition hall.

Gong Jie asked Li Yunhai: "Are you still staying at the Plaza Hotel?"

Li Yunhai looked at the snowflakes scattered in the sky and said, "Yes, I will return to China tomorrow. What are your plans?"

Gong Jie opened a small umbrella, blocked Li Yunhai's head, and said: "I am also confused now. I want to continue studying, but I am too old, and there is no need to think about it. But this It’s not easy to find jobs outside, unless you work as a nanny for foreigners, the salary is relatively high.”

Li Yunhai said in a deep voice: "You can't be a nanny for others!"

Gong Jie didn't expect such a big reaction from him and asked in surprise: "Why?"

Li Yunhai said: "You are the pride of our Chinese film and television industry. How can you be a humble nanny for white people? Are you at the mercy of others?"

Gong Jie experienced the darkest moment, but her heart was full of despair and loss. After coming to the United States, she found that life here was not as easy as she imagined. Now she only wants a job to survive. Say it again.

Li Yunhai said sincerely: "I invite you to return to China again and participate in the sitcom I invested in. If you don't want to stay in Shanghai, then move to Huacheng. If you don't want to make movies, then move to TV series. Do you like it?"

Gong Jie said: "Let me think about it again!"

The three of them came to the Plaza Hotel for dinner.

Li Yunhai ordered three Western dishes, all costing US$90.

When Hu Feng saw that the meal was not too luxurious, he accepted it. He couldn't help but ask: "Mr. Li, you are a self-employed person who runs a street vendor. How dare you stay in such a luxurious hotel when you come to the United States?"

Li Yunhai said: "With the money I earn, I can live wherever I want."

Hu Feng was stunned and muttered: "Is it so profitable to run a street stall in China? This hotel is not cheap!"

Li Yunhai said: "It's okay! It depends on how you do it and what you do."

After dinner, Li Yunhai called the waiter over, took out a hundred dollars and handed it to him, saying, "No need to look for it."

When Hu Feng saw him paying the bill, he breathed a sigh of relief without even a polite word.

After the meal, Gong Jie said to Hu Feng: "You go back first, I will discuss something with Mr. Li."

After Hu Feng left, Gong Jie smiled and said: "Sorry, Mr. Li, my friend is not very sensible and has caused trouble for you."

Li Yunhai gave a funny smile: "I thought he was your boyfriend! It's okay if he isn't! Otherwise, he really isn't worthy of you."

Gong Jie returned to the room with Li Yunhai and said, "Mr. Li, I want to cooperate with you. I wonder if I have this honor?"

Li Yunhai asked: "Cooperation? In what aspect?"

Gong Jie said: "Mr. Li, I don't want to go back to the film and television industry. I suddenly discovered that I don't really like filming that much. I want to do business with you."

(End of this chapter)